Larisa Epatko, Greenwire staff writer

National Parks Conservation Association members on Wednesday asked Interior Secretary Gale Norton if President Bush would come through on his pledge to fund the $5 billion backlog of national parks' maintenance needs over five years in light of his recent reversal on controlling carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, and she assured the group that the backlog is still one of his main funding goals.

Norton explained Bush's change of stance that he no longer planned to seek cuts in CO2 emissions from power plants by saying changes had occurred since he made the campaign promise, including the electricity shortages in California. "This administration has taken very, very seriously promises the president made on the campaign trail," she said.

In fact, administration officials looked to first fulfill his campaign promises when shaping their departmental budgets for fiscal year 2002, she added.

NPCA members indicated that other responses to their concerns over national parks were less satisfying. When asked whether the administration was planning to create no new parks, Norton said emphasis was being placed on park units already in existence, rather than studying more potential sites.

"Everybody gets excited about creating a new national park, but when you say you need to fix the sewer system, no one gets excited," said Norton. She said without adequate resources, the National Park Service has the responsibility to take care of the parks it already has.

NPCA President Tom Kiernan and other members said the organization is concerned that adequate funding go to parks' operations to stay on top of the maintenance needs and allow the agency to preserve its plants, animals and other historic and cultural resources, rather than just its infrastructure.

Norton again referred to the backlog, saying the budget process allowed the department to focus on a "few key issues."After addressing the campaign promises, the department then had to figure out priorities within the budget, she said.

Norton said Bush's budget outline contains an additional $20 million for the Natural Resource Challenge, which allows parks to inventory and monitor natural resources, manage non-native species to make sure they do not edge out other species, and collaborate on research.

She added that changes may be made to NPS' management directives so the agency is more efficient and financially accountable and the backlog does not reappear. The department will look into partnerships with private firms to bring new money into the parks, and continue to build on the volunteer base.

Kiernan said after Norton's talk that he viewed the $20 million as a "down payment," but that NPCA estimates $600 million per year is needed for operations and natural resources protection. He said increased funding of the operations accounts would help keep down the backlog of repair needs. There is only so much funding that can come from sources outside the federal government, he added.

On the issue of the prior administration's phaseout of snowmobiles in Yellowstone National Park, which will start controlling the number of users in two years, Norton said the department is using the time to examine the effects of the rule. She said snowmobiles have "annoyed" her at times, but she has learned they can be built to be less polluting and aggressive enforcement can keep snowmobilers on groomed roads used by cars in the summer.